Vieja maculicauda is a Central American classic cichlid. This beautiful large herbivores go by the trade name
Black Belt cichlid and you can find them for sale here along with other species of Vieja and Theraps cichlids. V. maculicauda has gone through a number of name changes over the years. For the longest time it was called Cichlasoma maculicauda, and switched to the genus Theraps, Paraneetroplus and Vieja.
These cichlids can reach an impressive twelve inches or so and grow thick in terms of width. They become very dense or solid. Believe it or not these large colorful cichlids are primary herbivores. They get their name sake, Black Belt cichlid, from their colors which are primary black and white with bright red accents.
Black belts do well in large community tanks and can be kept with other species like
Vieja sysnsiplum. V. maculicauda is native to Central America with a distribution of the Usumacinta River drainage in Guatemala to the Chagres River in Panama. The general consensus on aquascaping for these cichlids is to simulate their habitat with things like driftwood and floating plants to essentially proud lower lighting conditions.
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